"What you were is forever what you are."
-Salman Rushdie
The bus ride from the valley up to the hill stations was a very scenic one. There were large spanning views of the valley and the quiet little villages perched delicately on the steep terrain. Everywhere you looked you could see lush green terraces making their way up the hillside. But I was blind to the beauty as I clutched my gurgling stomach and popped Imodium like m&ms.
According to zee Germans, the place to be was a small place outside Kodaikanal called Vattakanal. Having secured a taxi ride, we arrived in Vatta in the early evening. The first set of houses we visited were fully booked so we walked across the street to look at some of the rooms there. They were large and very nice but out of our price range. At this point we were getting very tired of lugging around our packs and the light was starting to fade.
We decided to take the next house we looked at because the price was so good (and we had just walked up a brutal hill to get there). Now at about this time we realized the house had no running water and it was a lot more run down than we had originally thought. We started having second thoughts and asked the owners about any other options. They explained that there were some western tenants next door and we could simply move in with them when they got back. Still very unsure, the landlady offered to show Cat another option for the night which she later described to me as someones permanent residence. By this time it was dark out and we resigned ourselves to our current situation for the night. Later that evening the electricity cut out as well so we found ourselves in a scenario where we were paying someone to allow us to enjoy the comforts of camping. We told ourselves we would find a better place the next day and it would all be ok.
It got worse as later that night Cat came down with food poisoning and was constantly fleeing to the bathroom to wretch. With that, the night from Hell reached its grisly climax.
The next day we fled the house and Vattakanal and made straight for the modern comforts of Kodai. In Kodai we found a youth hostel that ended up being our favorite stay in India thus far. The hostel was perched at the top of a cliff with the most spectacular 180 degree view of the valley, thousands of feet below us. At 6500 feet, we were directly in the cloud line and they were constantly swallowing us only to spit us back out minutes later. It was absolutely incredible! For the following several days we relaxed in Kodai allowing the peace and quiet to wash away illness aches pains.
For the first time in India we slept with blankets at night and the water was so pure and cold. We were visited every day by some wild bison that lived in the area. The males were massive, towering to my height and perhaps weighing 1500 to 2000 pounds. They were constantly walking up the terraces to our hostel and pacing the pathways around our rooms.
Having fallen deeply in love with Kodai we reluctantly scheduled our twelve hour bus ride into the state of Kerala. Our destination was the coastal town of Kochi. We arrived in neighboring Ernakulum at four in the morning and wandered the barren streets to find a hotel (I had acquired a rosewood baton in Kodai for protection). After several hours of sleep we set out for Kochi. There are several different islands in the bay so its necessary to commute via ferry over tiny stretches of water.
Kochi was very peaceful with none of the hassling we'd come to expect in other cities. We meandered around the city for a couple of hours taking in the sights. We stopped in the 'Jew Town' district where apparently a Jewish colony had settled sometime centuries earlier. Then we headed back to the coast to watch the sunset and got some splendid photos of the Chinese fishing nets. Reminiscent of giant spider webs, these huge nets are attached to the shore by several long wooden arms. Apparently this obsolete technology requires four men to operate. After a delicious dinner of coconut prawns (actually turned out to be shrimp) we headed back to our hotel.
The next day we hopped on a bus south along the coast to Allapey. This is one of the traditional starting points for back water tours. Back water tours are a big thing in Kerala and many tourists indulge in spendy house boat trips up and down the water ways. The houseboats themselves are really cool. They're huge, sometimes multiple stories, and are completely covered with bamboo and palm leaves. Since we couldn't afford a trip of this caliber we had decided to take a local ferry that serviced residences and villages up and down the back waters. Costing a mere forty rupees and spanning three hours we figured it would suffice.
Our time in Allapey was a time for total relaxation without many highlights to speak of. We met Phil and Suzy, a fun German couple, at our hostel and spent a lot of time with them. They taught us the joys of many of the local sweets and we partook.
With just a couple days left on our India visa we decided to head further south still. We stopped at the small beach town of Kovalam. The next 48 hours were full of great food and lots of sunshine. After such a short stop it was sad packing up to head to the airport in the neighboring city of Trivandrum.
Our flight was painless and after a couple hours we made it to Delhi but our flight to Kathmandu wasn't for about 22 hours. We decided not to spend any money on a taxi or hotel so we nestled down on the floor safely out of eye shot behind some nice potted plants. 24 hours later we were in Kathmandu.
We are now spending a couple days here preparing for our trek. We're staying in the Thamel district which is the the traditional backpackers district. So far it is very lovely. The people seem friendly and the streets are cleaner and have bigger sidewalks (we've been used to walking in the street in India).
In a couple days we'll set off on our trek. The whole trip will take thirty two days starting here in Kathmandu at an altitude of 4000 feet and culminating at the peak of Gokyo Ri at a lofty altitude of 16,0000 feet. We also plan to do a small side trip from Gokyo to see some sacred lakes. We'll be taking the Gokyo trekking route up to Gokyo but on the return we decided to follow the 3 Passes trekking route (we won't be on any of the 3) to see a different area of the Everest region. We should be getting our first glimpse of Everest itself on the seventh day of our trek so we are obviously very excited. On the way to Gokyo we will be staying at rudimentary lodging so thankfully there is no need for a tent or sleeping bags. There will rarely be electricity so we will be disconnected from the inter-web for the next month (NOOOOOO!!!!). So until then wish us good luck and speedy travels.
-Salman Rushdie
The bus ride from the valley up to the hill stations was a very scenic one. There were large spanning views of the valley and the quiet little villages perched delicately on the steep terrain. Everywhere you looked you could see lush green terraces making their way up the hillside. But I was blind to the beauty as I clutched my gurgling stomach and popped Imodium like m&ms.
According to zee Germans, the place to be was a small place outside Kodaikanal called Vattakanal. Having secured a taxi ride, we arrived in Vatta in the early evening. The first set of houses we visited were fully booked so we walked across the street to look at some of the rooms there. They were large and very nice but out of our price range. At this point we were getting very tired of lugging around our packs and the light was starting to fade.
We decided to take the next house we looked at because the price was so good (and we had just walked up a brutal hill to get there). Now at about this time we realized the house had no running water and it was a lot more run down than we had originally thought. We started having second thoughts and asked the owners about any other options. They explained that there were some western tenants next door and we could simply move in with them when they got back. Still very unsure, the landlady offered to show Cat another option for the night which she later described to me as someones permanent residence. By this time it was dark out and we resigned ourselves to our current situation for the night. Later that evening the electricity cut out as well so we found ourselves in a scenario where we were paying someone to allow us to enjoy the comforts of camping. We told ourselves we would find a better place the next day and it would all be ok.
It got worse as later that night Cat came down with food poisoning and was constantly fleeing to the bathroom to wretch. With that, the night from Hell reached its grisly climax.
The next day we fled the house and Vattakanal and made straight for the modern comforts of Kodai. In Kodai we found a youth hostel that ended up being our favorite stay in India thus far. The hostel was perched at the top of a cliff with the most spectacular 180 degree view of the valley, thousands of feet below us. At 6500 feet, we were directly in the cloud line and they were constantly swallowing us only to spit us back out minutes later. It was absolutely incredible! For the following several days we relaxed in Kodai allowing the peace and quiet to wash away illness aches pains.
For the first time in India we slept with blankets at night and the water was so pure and cold. We were visited every day by some wild bison that lived in the area. The males were massive, towering to my height and perhaps weighing 1500 to 2000 pounds. They were constantly walking up the terraces to our hostel and pacing the pathways around our rooms.
Having fallen deeply in love with Kodai we reluctantly scheduled our twelve hour bus ride into the state of Kerala. Our destination was the coastal town of Kochi. We arrived in neighboring Ernakulum at four in the morning and wandered the barren streets to find a hotel (I had acquired a rosewood baton in Kodai for protection). After several hours of sleep we set out for Kochi. There are several different islands in the bay so its necessary to commute via ferry over tiny stretches of water.
Kochi was very peaceful with none of the hassling we'd come to expect in other cities. We meandered around the city for a couple of hours taking in the sights. We stopped in the 'Jew Town' district where apparently a Jewish colony had settled sometime centuries earlier. Then we headed back to the coast to watch the sunset and got some splendid photos of the Chinese fishing nets. Reminiscent of giant spider webs, these huge nets are attached to the shore by several long wooden arms. Apparently this obsolete technology requires four men to operate. After a delicious dinner of coconut prawns (actually turned out to be shrimp) we headed back to our hotel.
The next day we hopped on a bus south along the coast to Allapey. This is one of the traditional starting points for back water tours. Back water tours are a big thing in Kerala and many tourists indulge in spendy house boat trips up and down the water ways. The houseboats themselves are really cool. They're huge, sometimes multiple stories, and are completely covered with bamboo and palm leaves. Since we couldn't afford a trip of this caliber we had decided to take a local ferry that serviced residences and villages up and down the back waters. Costing a mere forty rupees and spanning three hours we figured it would suffice.
Our time in Allapey was a time for total relaxation without many highlights to speak of. We met Phil and Suzy, a fun German couple, at our hostel and spent a lot of time with them. They taught us the joys of many of the local sweets and we partook.
With just a couple days left on our India visa we decided to head further south still. We stopped at the small beach town of Kovalam. The next 48 hours were full of great food and lots of sunshine. After such a short stop it was sad packing up to head to the airport in the neighboring city of Trivandrum.
Our flight was painless and after a couple hours we made it to Delhi but our flight to Kathmandu wasn't for about 22 hours. We decided not to spend any money on a taxi or hotel so we nestled down on the floor safely out of eye shot behind some nice potted plants. 24 hours later we were in Kathmandu.
We are now spending a couple days here preparing for our trek. We're staying in the Thamel district which is the the traditional backpackers district. So far it is very lovely. The people seem friendly and the streets are cleaner and have bigger sidewalks (we've been used to walking in the street in India).
In a couple days we'll set off on our trek. The whole trip will take thirty two days starting here in Kathmandu at an altitude of 4000 feet and culminating at the peak of Gokyo Ri at a lofty altitude of 16,0000 feet. We also plan to do a small side trip from Gokyo to see some sacred lakes. We'll be taking the Gokyo trekking route up to Gokyo but on the return we decided to follow the 3 Passes trekking route (we won't be on any of the 3) to see a different area of the Everest region. We should be getting our first glimpse of Everest itself on the seventh day of our trek so we are obviously very excited. On the way to Gokyo we will be staying at rudimentary lodging so thankfully there is no need for a tent or sleeping bags. There will rarely be electricity so we will be disconnected from the inter-web for the next month (NOOOOOO!!!!). So until then wish us good luck and speedy travels.
